Yes, Erik Menendez was the co-author of a screenplay about a young man who kills his parents and inherits $157,000,000. The script that was completed — and shopped around Hollywood — before the murders.

Glenn Yeffeth, the boss at my publisher BenBella Books, interviewed me for the company’s podcast, Building Books, and we talked how most of the mainstream media got the original Menendez story wrong in the 1990s.

My first draft was 250,000 words and BenBella only wanted to publish 100,000 words.

On Friday, September 10: “The defense calls Joseph Lyle Menendez,” announced attorney Jill Lansing at five minutes before two o’clock. Lyle, dressed in a navy crew-neck sweater, walked directly to Lansing.

Lansing was blunt:

“Did you love your parents?”

“Yes,” he choked out hoarsely.

“And on August 20, 1989, did you and your brother kill your mom and dad?”